Accessory Dwelling Units (ADU’s)

Accessory dwelling units (adu’s) were permitted years ago as carriage houses, but were not permitted in the old zoning code. Now, in the new zoning code, they are permitted again.

ADU’s must have their own address and can be rented, but they can’t be sold. Also, they have the same type of restrictions as the primary structure on your property.

First, to learn more, take a look at the two definitions for an adu in the zoning code. These occur on pages 11.12-30 and 13.3-1. As you can see, it may be over a garage or inside a basement or part of the main house.

If it’s a detached adu, as in a separate building or over the garage, you can learn more by seeing page 5.3-35.

A detached adu can be 1 ½ stories and 24’ high. As with the garage, the vertical leg of the bulk plane is 10’ with an inward slope of 45 degrees from the top.

Lot sizes are limited in the same way as the house lots except that we get a 50% exception for land coverage, up to a maximum of 500 sf. The exception doesn’t apply unless we are 15’ from the main house, and at least 80% of the ground floor is used for parking. (ie. a garage)

If located in the rear 35% of the lot, the side lot and rear setbacks are 5’, unless the lot is <30’ wide. If less than 30’ the side lot setback is 3’.

In addition to the above, the land coverage (footprint) is limited to 650 sf if the lot is <6,000sf, or in most cases if the lot is 48’ wide or less. The coverage is 864 sf if the lot <7,000sf and 1,000 sf if the lot > 7,000sf.